Head gasked Gone...... E220 Coupe

[marian]

Hi,
I have head gasked gone on my engine W124 CE220 with 145000 miles and left in with non mercedes garage to repair it. The garage took the cylinder head off and take to engine service to have skimed and they told me they have to weld it because of some corrosion on the head or something like that.....
Does anyboody heard about welding cylinder head????
And if its secure to have weld it or is it better to buy a new one?????

 

[turbopete]

hi and welcome to the forums.
the head will probably have become porous. ive no experience in having them welded. any ive come across have had the head replaced. maybe someone else has experience with welded heads and can advise further.

 

[television]

Welding of cast iron head is not too good, or successful, metal stitching is a far better alternative or another head would be my choice

 

[meanie]

I've had a number of early 190D heads welded (plus lots of Peugeot XUD heads), & done properly they've given no troubles at all.
In this instance I would guess that there is probably excessive corrosion around the water gallery faces which would compromise the sealing of the new gasket.Getting this type of corrosion 'filled' is a sensible course to take in terms of the long term effectiveness of the repairs being done.

 

[turbopete]

Welding of cast iron head is not too good, or successful, metal stitching is a far better alternative or another head would be my choice

i thought all mercs had alloy heads. thats why i mentioned it going porous!

 

[Number_Cruncher]

If possible, make sure that the area being repaired is tested for hardness after re-machining.

The alloy used in these cylinders heads acheives its properties via a heat treatment process, which might easily be ruined if the alloy is welded. The main area that must be hard is that which seals against the firing ring on the head gasket.

If the welded area goes through the firing ring, I would test the hardness at a point close to this, but not actually sealed by the gasket, and compare the hardness with a similar non-repaired area.

A portable rebound tester would be the best way to take the measurement, and a good engineering shop will have access to one.

>>http://www.corvib-int.com/corstore/concstore.cfm?measure=hardness+portable

You're looking for Rockwell hardness being greater than 70 to give reliable sealing.